February 27th, 2013 07:06 AM

In this rendering provided by Blue Star Line, the Titanic II is shown cruising at sea. The ship, which Australian billionaire Clive Palmer is planning to build in China, is scheduled to sail in 2016. AP PHOTO/BLUE STAR LINE

NEW YORK—An Australian billionaire says he wants to build a new version of the Titanic that could set sail in 2016.

Clive Palmer unveiled blueprints for the famously doomed ship’s namesake Tuesday at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York.

Palmer said 40,000 people have expressed interest in tickets for the maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York, expected in 2016. He said construction is scheduled to start soon in China.

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He said people are inspired by his quest to replicate one of the most famous vessels in history.

The original Titanic was the world’s largest and most luxurious ocean liner when it hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank on April 15, 1912. More than 1,500 people perished in the maiden voyage.